S.H.I.E.L.D..
Nick Fury stood in front of the main screen, his one eye scanning everyone in the command room.
No one spoke first.
The technicians were looking down at the equipment, several operatives were guarding the door, and someone was walking quickly by in the distance carrying documents. Everything seemed no different from usual.
But Rumlow is Hydra, and the four agents who participated in the operation with him were all Hydra.
The fact that these five individuals were able to bypass me and obtain official arrest warrants and special restraints suggests that there couldn't possibly be only one operations supervisor behind them.
Fury turned around and looked at a technician.
List all the permissions Rumlow has recently accessed.
One of the technicians paused for half a second.
"Sir, should we notify the internal security department?"
"Unnecessary."
Fury looked at the name tag on his chest.
"This matter should only go through your hands; don't leave any records of inquiries."
The technician's fingers immediately landed on the keyboard.
On the screen, authorization information was retrieved one by one.
Operational approval comes from the rapid response department, equipment deployment goes through the weapons management office, and target intelligence is provided by the strategic intelligence group. These three lines of authority belong to three different senior officers.
Fury's face darkened.
This is no longer as simple as someone trying to take advantage of the situation.
This is electrofishing.
"Continue the investigation."
"Yes, Chief."
The technician had just pressed Enter when the screen suddenly flickered.
All data disappeared instantly.
Immediately afterwards, the lights in the entire command center turned from white to red, and a piercing alarm sounded overhead.
Warning: External communication interrupted.
"Warning: Internal network permissions have been changed; the armory is now under emergency lockdown."
Fury was startled and looked up at the main screen.
"So fast?! Oh no!"
One by one, the surveillance footage went dark, and the access control system turned red. The door to the command center locked with a mechanical creak, and several agents immediately drew their weapons to stand guard.
Bang!
Fury dodged the first bullet, the second grazed his abdomen, tearing a gash in his black trench coat.
The person who fired the shot was the special agent standing by the door.
" Director Fury, I'm sorry."
The other person raised their gun again.
You know too much.
Fury overturned the control panel next to him and, under the cover of the equipment, drew his gun and returned fire.
Three gunshots rang out.
Two agents fell to the ground, and a third lunged at the control panel of the side door. Fury shot him in the wrist, then smashed through the maintenance access and rushed in, clutching his abdomen.
Blood seeped from between his fingers, but Fury didn't have time to bandage himself, as more footsteps echoed behind him.
The entire headquarters woke up.
However, it might not be S.H.I.E.L.D. wakes up.
The top floor of Stark Tower.
Coulson pressed the communicator inside his collar and made several calls.
But all that could be heard on the emergency channel was static.
"Headquarters has cut off communication."
Tony crossed his arms, the reactor on his chest glowing blue.
"Or is it possible that they finally decided to close down this organization with such a long and unforgettable name?"
" Mr. Stark, our emergency channels will not be automatically shut down."
Coulson looked up.
"Unless headquarters is attacked, or even if the enemy has taken over the communications center."
Chen Mo sat down at the lab bench and casually picked up a wrench to examine it.
Congratulations!
He put the wrench back in its place.
"Internal strife in the company escalates directly into a gunfight, eliminating meetings, voting, and blame-shifting—it's extremely efficient."
Coulson strode up to him.
" Mr. Stark, Mr. Tourist, I need your help."
Tony pointed a finger at Coulson.
"Hey, wait a minute, your men just stormed into my building armed and tried to kidnap my guest right in front of me. Now you want me to clean your office?"
" Mr. Stark, actually, those people lying on the ground aren't actually S.H.I.E.L.D.."
"Their pay stubs say S.H.I.E.L.D.., you can talk to the IRS about that."
" Mr. Stark."
Coulson looked at him.
"If Hydra really takes control of headquarters, they'll get their hands on the weapons, intelligence, and special target data stored by S.H.I.E.L.D.. Then the trouble won't just be confined to that building."
Tony scoffed.
"Come on, your director was attacked right at headquarters? I really suspect S.H.I.E.L.D. has infiltrated Hydra."
Coulson returned empty-handed and turned his attention back to Chen Mo.
Chen Mo waved his hand.
Don't look at me. Hydra wants to capture you.
Chen Mo leaned against the lab bench, speaking casually.
"If they come to me of their own accord, I wouldn't mind having extra food. But asking me to go all the way there to put out a fire for S.H.I.E.L.D..? I don't have the time for that."
"Sir tourist, I won't try to convince you with the idea of saving the world."
Coulson paused for a moment.
" S.H.I.E.L.D.. possesses a wealth of special items and information on numerous high-risk targets. Some of these items should be enough to pique your interest."
Chen Mo looked up at him.
"For example?"
"Only Director Fury can access these top-level files."
"So you're now inviting me to a rescue mission with some kind of blind box whose contents I don't even know?"
I can't guarantee that what you need is inside.
Coulson did not avoid his gaze.
"But Rumlow's restraint system is only a small part of S.H.I.E.L.D..'s inventory. The fact that he would risk capturing you means that the people behind him also believe that you deserve to be used with higher-level resources."
This isn't just empty talk.
Coulson knew limited things, but there were certainly some good items in S.H.I.E.L.D..'s inventory.
For example, the Tesseract, or certain alien technologies.
There are many things that the plot may not have mentioned.
Chen Mo stroked his chin.
"Okay, let me think about it."
Tony looked at him.
"Hey, it didn't take you this long when you refused earlier."
"Since the compensation has changed, my attitude naturally has to change accordingly."
Wow, that's touchingly honest.
Tony turned and walked toward the armor platform.
" JARVIS, search for unusual signals at S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters."
"Sir, all external communications in the target area have been cut off."
"Adjust the satellite."
Tony's visor slowly closed.
"In that case, I'd like to see how many teeth these old-timers from World War II still have."
S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters, underground passage.
Fury leaned against the wall to change his magazine.
He heard two hurried footsteps ahead and immediately raised his gun.
Black Widow burst out from around the corner, followed by Hawkeye with his bow in hand.
"Chief!"
Natasha saw the blood on his abdomen and immediately reached out to support him.
"Are you still able to walk?"
"I have to go, even if I can't."
Fury looked at Hawkeye.
How many people in the bureau have defected?
"Have no idea."
Hawkeye turned and fired an arrow, the arrowhead flying across the corridor and killing several gunmen who had just caught up.
"But of the twelve people I just met, ten wanted to kill me. The other two died too quickly to even say anything."
"Go to the hangar."
The three retreated along the maintenance access road.
Gunshots rang out continuously in the confined space. Natasha emptied two magazines, Hawkeye's arrows were dwindling, Fury's blood flowed from his abdomen, leaving intermittent trails on the ground.
They finally broke open the side door of the hangar.
There were no escape planes in sight.
The heavy alloy gates had already closed, sealing off all takeoff routes. Dozens of armed personnel appeared simultaneously on the high platforms surrounding the hangar, their gun barrels pointing from all directions.
Hawkeye reached behind him.
It's empty.
Natasha removed the magazine; there was only one bullet left.
Fury leaned against a delivery truck, his breathing growing heavier.
On the high platform, the leading man raised his hand.
" Hail Hydra!"
The palm fell.
The muzzle flashed simultaneously.
boom!
The top of the hangar suddenly collapsed.
A figure plummeted vertically from a hundred meters in the air, crashing heavily in front of the three. The shockwave swept across the ground, tearing up steel plates in large sections. The gunmen on the platform were thrown about, their bullets all veering off course.
Gravel rained down from the sky.
Chen Mo stood in the center of the deep pit, with cracks creeping up to the sides of the hangar beneath his feet.
Fury clutched his wound, and upon recognizing the person who had entered, his one eye twitched.
"I really didn't expect it to be you. How did Coulson persuade you?"
"Oh, Mr. Coulson's sincerity has touched me."
Chen Mo shook his finger, pointing at the person opposite him.
"Also, you should just rename this place Serpent S.H.I.E.L.D.. How come the other side has more people than you?"
Fury's face darkened, but no one else could tell.
"I will find out."